THESE are the horror scenes as police raid an illegal dog slaughterhouse.

Hundreds of dog parts and carcasses are seen strewn all over the floors of the filthy apartment, with many of the dead animals appearing to have been former pets - as they heart-breakingly still have their collars attached.

Officers raided the property after locals complained about the stench coming from the ground floor flat in the city of Luoyang, in central China's Henan Province.

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One room in the tiny 20 square-metre flat looked to have been used for cooking dog meat while the other fly-infested room was used for slaughtering the terrified animals.

Police spokesman Guang Ni said: "The smell of blood and the howls of other dogs being killed would have been terrifying for the three we found there still alive.

"They were out of their minds with fear when we rescued them."

Police were taken to the property by local animal rights campaigner Juan Fan, a volunteer of the non-governmental China Association for the Protection of Small Animals.

She said: "The slaughterhouse is filthy, many dogs have skin diseases – who would dare to eat dog meat like this?

"Also many of the carcasses still have their collars on which most likely means they have been stolen from the street."

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Dead animals were strewn across the filthy flat

The female owner of the flat, Xiao Wang, 36, was arrested as officers shut down her illegal operation.

While the eating of dog meat is not illegal in China, Wang is likely to face charges for running the slaughterhouse unlicensed and without certification.

She denied snatching the animals from the street, telling police: "I have only just started, I bought the dogs from the local market."

However, if the dogs are found to be former pets, Wang could also be prosecuted for theft and damaging property.

Unlike many countries around the world, cruelty to animals is not a crime in China.

This is despite authorities coming under increasing pressure to ban an annual week-long dog eating festival held in the city of Yulin, in the southern Guangxi province.

The criticism of the traditional festival - held every June - has been given further impetus through social media, with Chinese pop stars protesting against the celebration on their accounts on Sina Weibo, China's version of Twitter.

Health experts are also concerned about the implications of eating poorly-regulated meat.